Ministry of Economy Discusses Ways to Boost Trade in Food Products with People's Republic of China

Meeting Comes Ahead of UAE’s Participation at International Food Exhibition in Beijing

Abu Dhabi-UAE: 8 May 2014 - His Excellency Jouma'a Al Kit, Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy for Foreign Trade, reiterated the importance of the special economic relations shared by the UAE and the Republic of China during a meeting with a high level trade delegation from the People’s Republic of China led by His Excellency Bian Zhenhu, President of China Chamber of Commerce for Foodstuff and Native Produce. 

The discussions focused on strengthening bilateral food trade between the two countries. The International Food Exhibition that is scheduled to be held in Beijing from November 26-28 was also discussed with a view to increasing awareness of the event in the UAE on a national level.  

The meeting held in the new ministry building in the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi was attended by Mohammed Nasser Hamdan Al Zaabi, Director of Investment Promotion Department at the Ministry of Economy, and Abdul Salam Al Ali, Director of Foreign Trade Policy. 

The Chinese delegation was represented by the Commercial Attache at the Embassy of China in Abu Dhabi, as well as senior diplomats and leading businessmen and investors involved in the production, export and import of food. 

Commenting on the meeting, His Excellency Jouma'a Al Kit said: "China is one of the most important trading partners of the UAE. Balance of trade between the two countries stood at US$17.486 billion at the end of 2012. The same period also recorded 73 Chinese commercial enterprises and 356 commercial agencies in the UAE. A total of 2,483 trademarks were registered with the Ministry of Economy. This strong presence underscores the depth of the business relationship shared by the two countries."

Al Kit added: "China is a global leader in agricultural production and the UAE seeks to benefit from the Chinese experience in this sector. Our forthcoming participation in the International Food Exhibition will allow the UAE government and our private sector companies to access latest industry developments and technological innovations.”

On his part, His Excellency Bian Zhenhu invited the UAE government and private sector enterprises to benefit from the exposure provided by the International Food Exhibition in Beijing. He also expressed the keenness of the China Chamber of Commerce for food products in facilitating the entry of Emirati products into the Chinese market. 

As part of this priority, the two sides discussed the possibility of exchanging best practices and data on the import and export of food products, meat and fish in accordance with mutual trade policies. The scope of making the information available to businessmen to facilitate their investments and avoid potential challenges in the import/export domain was also explored.